Chapter 19
The Lady Doth Protest
Olivia
The next few days are a blur of anxiety and fear-fuelled scrambling across the Welsh countryside.
The info Rhys got out of the Lodge guy means we’re travelling hard for most of the day, taking overgrown country roads and tracks that haven’t seen any human activity since the world fell.
It’s gruelling and miserable, made even worse by off and on rainfall that makes the ground slick and muddy.
By the time we’ve finished setting up camp, handing out guard rotas and anything else that needs doing for the night, we’re exhausted.
The only good that’s come from all of this is that all the tension that’s been brewing since the barn has evaporated.
People are quicker to help others, including Jerri and her group.
I’m pretty sure Rhys almost died of shock the first time she rushed in to help him set up camp the other day without a single venomous word. At least not at him.
She’s still more than willing to put others in what she deems is their place, but it’s half-hearted compared to the caustic vitriol from before. I guess she’s finally learning how to manage her own stress and fear without lashing out at others.
Things between Rhys and me are better, but still awkward.
Neither of us know how to act around one another, especially since we’ve recently established new boundaries.
Friendly boundaries. But even though a large part of me wants him as more than a friend, Rhys doesn’t.
And since I’m in a relationship with his two best friends, it’s best I keep those thoughts locked down.
Even if I’m noticing just how much his shirts cling to his muscular chest or how his biceps bulge when he rakes a hand through his short hair.
The way his luscious lips twist downward and his eyebrows draw together whenever he’s deep in thought.
The ease with which he takes charge of any situation he finds himself in and helps anyone who needs it without complaint.
And then there’s his intelligence and dry wit that only comes into play whenever he’s around people he likes and trusts. Including me…
Damn it! Ollie, focus!
I shake my head, causing my brother to glance over at me with a frown.
It’s a familiar expression, one he’s been wearing ever since the relationship between me, Alex, and Theo became apparent.
A few people in the group are uncomfortable with it—mostly the older ones—but everyone else has taken it in stride.
Or just completely ignore it like Jerri and her friends do.
“You okay there, Liv?” Tobias asks as he moves closer to me so our conversation won’t be overheard by the people walking around us.
“Of course she’s okay. She has three men panting after her,” a new voice says on my other side before I can speak. “Lucky bitch.”
“Fuck off, Rachel,” Tobias says with an exasperated sigh.
I glance over at the woman in question to see her grinning at me. “Am I wrong?”
“It’s two, not three,” I correct as I reach up and stroke Ketchup’s silky feathers with the back of my fingers. The magpie coos and leans into my touch.
Rachel’s smile widens until it almost looks manic. “Sure,” she says, her voice thick with sarcasm. “Two men. We’re totally going to ignore the way you eye-fuck Rhys.”
Tobias chokes on my other side. “Rachel! What the fuck?”
“Or that he eye-fucks you back,” she continues, ignoring Tobias’s outburst.
I roll my eyes. “There’s no eye-fucking. We’re just friends.”
That causes both Tobias and Rachel to snort.
“Yeah, and I’m the Queen of England,” Rachel says with a look that screams, are-you-serious? “You’re either blind, in denial, or both if you think that you and Rhys are only friends.”
Tobias nods and hums in agreement, his earlier mortification on the subject forgotten. “It’s obvious to everyone that there’s something more there.”
I scowl at both of them. Since when did my love life become the topic of discussion? Not that Rhys is a part of my love life or anything. We’re just friends. And I’m completely fine with that. No denial here. Nope. None.
Hands come from behind me to wrap around my stomach and pull me back against a hard chest. Ketchup squawks at being jostled, flaps her wings and flies off to where Elise is riding Bean further up ahead.
“What are we talking about?” Theo asks, his voice filled with mischief and curiosity.
“Noth—”
“We’re discussing the fact that Ollie and Rhys are eye-fucking one another while being in denial of their feelings,” Rachel says, cutting me off before I can finish.
I glare at her, but she’s utterly unrepentant, maybe even smug. Asshole.
Theo’s chest vibrates as he chuckles and tightens his arms around me. “I told you that you guys are supposed to be getting closer to one another,” he murmurs, his breathing fanning against the sensitive skin of my neck and causing me to shiver.
“I made it up to you, remember?”
“Hmm, you did.” His voice lowers into a growl.
Just thinking about the other night, about how good Theo’s cock felt as he fucked me, has my clit throbbing and goosebumps exploding across my skin.
My breath catches in my throat at just how strong my reaction to the memory is.
Fuck. I really need to get Alex, Theo, or both of them alone so we can do it again. It’s been too long.
Judging from the hardness pressed against my back as Theo shifts behind me, he agrees.
“Alright, knock it off, you two,” Tobias says with a wrinkled nose. “I don’t need to see or hear my baby sister flirting.” Apparently his mortification is back.
“But you’re perfectly okay with discussing the wrong assumption that I’m in love with Rhys?” I shoot back with a glare.
“No one said anything about love. Just that you want to fuck each other,” Rachel says, that smug expression still on her face.
It makes me want to punch her, but I’m not stupid enough to do it. Punching Jerri—who is about my height and weight—is one thing, but Rachel has more muscle and the training to back it up. She’d pummel me into the ground and giggle while doing it.
I roll my eyes. “Semantics. Either way, you’re all wrong. I’m more than happy being friends with Rhys.”
Theo makes a humming sound in the back of his throat. “Methinks the lady doth protest too much.”
Tobias nods sagely like it’s wisdom bestowed upon him by a deity. “She has a habit of doing that.”
They’re all assholes.
I rip myself from Theo’s arms with a frustrated huff.
“Since you’re all hellbent on ganging up on me and being massive pricks, I’m going somewhere else.
” I shove my way through the crowd, pointedly ignoring Theo calling my name with amusement in his voice or the laughter coming from Rachel and Tobias.
I’m not entirely sure where I’m going, just that I’m away from them.
Frustration, anger, and something else that I refuse to name swirl in my chest like a toxic storm.
A small part of me knows that they’re right, that my feelings for Rhys are more than friendly.
But he’s the one who put the boundary in place, and I’ll be damned if I bulldoze past it.
I’m so caught up in my snarled thoughts I don’t realise I’ve reached the front of the group until a heavy hand lands on my shoulder. I startle and whip around to see Rhys staring down at me, his brow drawn and his lips tilted downward.
Great. I’ve come to the one person I shouldn’t have. If this doesn’t fuel the others’ suspicions, I don’t know what will.
“You alright?” Rhys asks as he drops his hand from my shoulder.
I shove away the feeling of loss and shrug. “As I can be when I’m getting ganged up on.”
The concern leeches from his face, instantly replaced with anger. “Ganged up on? By who? Tell me.” He snaps his head around and glares at the people behind us with a tight jaw.
My stomach flips and my heart melts at how quickly he jumps to my defence, but I squash it.
He’s just being a good friend, I remind myself.
Don’t read too much into it. “It’s fine, Rhys.
Just Theo, Rachel, and my brother being assholes is all,” I say, clenching my hands into fists as I barely resist the urge to reach out and place a comforting hand on his arm.
He side-eyes me for a moment, like he’s trying to decide if I’m being honest or not. Whatever he sees on my face must reassure him, because he grunts and relaxes. “Fine, but if anyone else starts anything with you, I want you to tell me.”
“If I can’t handle it, I will.”
The muscle in his jaw ticks at my answer, but he just nods and directs his focus back to the road ahead.
Only to stutter to a stop a second later, honey eyes wide with shock.
I tense next to him, draw my bow and nock an arrow as I scan the road ahead. But all I can see are trees, tall, overgrown hedges, and the cracked tarmac ahead. Where’s the threat?
“What’s wrong?” I ask him as the group stops behind us, murmuring quietly at the sudden change of movement.
He stares for a moment, lost in thought, before shaking himself. “We made it,” he says, his voice soft and filled with awe.
My brow furrows. “Made it? Made it where—oh.”
It’s then that I realise that some of the group’s murmuring has turned into loud, excited chatter.
“Holy shit! We’re almost home!” Jerri squeals from somewhere behind.
My own excitement bubbles to the surface, erasing the frustration and anger from being ganged up on. It blends with the relief and joy surging inside me, creating a heady mix that has my head spinning and breathless laughter escaping from my lips.
We made it. Somehow we evaded the gangs and zombies and made our way home. To Haven.
“How far are we?” I ask, unable to suppress the huge smile on my face as I turn to Rhys.
He wears a similar smile, his amber eyes brimming with happiness. “About a mile up the road.”